cheese curds – where, where were you…

I thought I was exposed to most all cuisines but was I wrong! One of my last work trip took me to The Old Fashioned, an institution in Madison, Wisconsin.

Perhaps it’s the midwest, perhaps because Wisconsin is the “cheesehead” country or maybe it’s because it gets so freakin’ cold that folks have invented fatty goodness to keep you warm through the winter but man, I’ve been missing out on these little critters called cheese curds! Fried golden brown with dozen different dipping sauces from smoked paprika to Tiger Blue dip – they are warm, crispy on the outside and chewy on the inside and oh-so-addictive as you pop them down with a flight of beer:)

But the reason why I haven’t been exposed to them is that they are a by-product of cheese making and since they must be eaten fresh with a very short shelf-life, they’re only available where there’s a lot of cheese being made~ ah! I feel better now…

Good thing we don’t have them readily available nearby. Otherwise – I’d be stuffing myself with cheese curds all the time and given the shape some of the folks were in (ah-hmm), I think I’ll leave it to the occasional cheese curd/beer binge. Cheddar cheese and apple pie? really? not-so-much. Must be an acquired taste… And poutine? fries, cheese curds and gravy? Wow – but at least once, right?

And how about those off-the-menu Animal fries from In-N-Out? I’ll stick with just the double double and regular fries please…

About chefkelly

Leveraging a lifelong passion for food and combining a unique cultural mesh of korean cuisine, robust flavors of Texas BBQ and California cuisine, Chef Kelly brings her own signature style to delectable perfect bites exploring complex and often surprising interplay of flavors, textures and colors. She has honed and shared her craft through her experiences from five star restaurant kitchens to private cooking instruction to her self-written food blog at chefkelly.com all made with 2 tablespoons of love; love for food, love for life.